Eliza Fletcher was 34 when she was abducted during her routine morning jog near the University of Memphis on September 2, 2022. Surveillance footage showed a struggle and Fletcher being forced into a dark-colored SUV; a pair of sandals left at the scene later yielded DNA that linked Cleotha Abston to the abduction. Abston was arrested the day after Fletcher disappeared. Her body was found on September 5 behind a vacant home in South Memphis; an autopsy found a gunshot wound to the head and additional injuries including jaw fractures and leg trauma.

Investigators also tied Abston to an unrelated 2021 rape case; a delay in testing that rape kit meant he was not in custody before Fletcher’s abduction. Abston’s brother, Mario Abston, was arrested on drug and firearms charges after Cleotha was seen at his apartment following the kidnapping. Cleotha Abston later pleaded guilty to first-degree murder and especially aggravated kidnapping; in October 2024 a judge sentenced him to life without parole for the murder and an additional 40 years concurrent for the kidnapping.

Eliza Fletcher was remembered as a kindergarten teacher and mother of two, and runners across Memphis and the country organized events to finish her run as a tribute. Does anyone have information about Eliza’s route that morning or saw activity near the University of Memphis on September 2, 2022?